Author: Jamie Canaves

Incredible Collection of Food History Has Been Saved

The Food Timeline is a lo-fi website free from advertising maintained until 2013 by Lynne Olver, a reference librarian, that is a super comprehensive resource on the history of food. After Olver passed away in 2015 the site remained with no one to run it. Until an article about it ran last summer that had almost 100 organizations and individuals showing interest, with the Special Collections and University Archives department at Virginia Tech University being handed the site.

Tintin Comic Auction Sale Breaks Record

Belgian artist Herge’s Tintin drawing sold for 2.6 million euros ($3.1 million), recently in Paris, breaking the previous record for most expensive comic book art. Created with Chinese ink, gouache, and watercolor, it was designed for the cover of the fifth volume of the adventures of Tintin, The Blue Lotus, in 1936.

Austin Public Library’s Most Checked Out e-Books In 2020

It only feels like 2020 was 84 years ago, I swear it’s only been two weeks so this is still relevant. And really we just love any and all book data. Austin library patrons checked out almost 1 million books through Libby, up from 2019’s 600,000. And here’s their most popular titles in 2020 through Libby–love seeing that the Hulu adaptation got many more readers to pick up Celeste Ng’s Little Fires Everywhere, and Michelle Obama’s Becoming is still on everyone’s list.

Barbie’s New Historical Icon Doll Is Dr. Maya Angelou

Mattel’s Barbie has an inspiring women series and their latest is Maya Angelou. The activist and author (and many other amazing things) has been designed into a gorgeous Barbie doll holding her book I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings. You can purchase the doll, which will look awesome on bookshelves, now at Target and Amazon for $29.99.

Amazon’s E-Book Business Under Connecticut Investigation

Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said that how Amazon.com Inc. sells and distributes digital books is under investigation. “Tong’s office issued a subpoena to Amazon in 2019 for documents related to its deals with five major publishers, according to a copy of the subpoena obtained by the Tech Transparency Project through an open records request and shared with The Hill.”

Paris-Based Social Book Reading App Acquired By Medium

Glose is a Paris-based iOS, Android, and web app that lets you purchase and read books on your device while also having the social experience of a platform like Goodreads, and elements of rewards to motivate you to read. Medium, an online publishing platform, is acquiring the app for an undisclosed amount.

Books By and About Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris for Readers of All Ages

These Kamala Harris books give readers of all ages the opportunity to learn more about our new Madame Vice President.

Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson Will Publish First Novel

Inspired by her great-great-aunt Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott, and her own personal life, the Duchess of York, Sarah Ferguson has written her first novel, co-written with Marguerite Kaye. HarperCollins Publishers and Harlequin UK will simultaneously publish the novel Her Heart For a Compass on August 3, 2021. However, this is not her first book rodeo as she is a published children’s and nonfiction author.

To All The Boys: Always and Forever Trailer

Need a little swoon in your life? Have you been impatiently waiting for the final installment of Jenny Han’s To All The Boys trilogy adaptations? Then it’s time to muppet arm for the official trailer for To All The Boys: Always and Forever.

Libro.fm Becomes Social Purpose Corporation

Libro.fm, an audiobook membership service that splits the profits with indie bookstores, has announced they are now a social purpose corporation. With both social and financial goals they are now a hybrid of a nonprofit and a for profit organization and have released their 2020 Social Purpose Annual Report.

Learn Your Historia With These 20 Mexican History Books

Find the best Mexican history books, with titles for children and adults, to explore the rich history of this country, including The Broken Spears: The Aztec Account of the Conquest of Mexico by Miguel León-Portilla, Translated by Lysander Kemp.

The NYPL’s New Dial A Story Line

The New York Public Library has a new dial-a-story service which is exactly as it sounds: You call 917-ASK-NYPL (917-275-6975), press #6 in the menu option, and you’ll hear a librarian read a children’s book– or you can also listen via a podcast app. Every week there will be a new story and you’ll have three language options: English, Spanish, and Mandarin.

Netflix Will Adapt The Lincoln Lawyer Into TV Show

Michael Connelly’s legal thriller The Lincoln Lawyer was already adapted into a film starring Matthew McConaughey in 2011. Now we’re getting a second adaptation in a slightly different format: a streaming Netflix series. Manuel Garcia-Rulfo will star as defense attorney Mick Haller and David E. Kelley will also be part of the producing crew. Alright, alright, alright.

MTV Books Relaunched

In a fun game of “are you an old?” this news will most likely be exciting–or just nostalgic–for the MTV generation that grew up knowing and reading their published books. MTV Books is getting relaunched! They’ve partnered with Simon & Schuster and selected Christian Trimmer, a children’s book editor and author, to lead it. The overall goal sounds like finding new YA titles to also adapt to film/TV.

Support And Hope In The Philadelphia Book Scene

The Healing Verse Philly Poetry Line is just the latest way that the Philadelphia book scene is sharing hope and supporting citizens.

A Look Into The Recent Misuse Of “Orwellian”

You can hand a person a book but you can’t make them understand it or stop them from knowingly misrepresenting its meaning, like the current rise in invoking something being “Orwellian” when it’s not. Recently, Donald Trump’s ban from Twitter and Sen. Josh Hawley losing his book deal with Simon & Schuster has Trump supporters misusing the term. Here’s a history on George Orwell (Animal Farm; 1984) and what “Orwellian” is meant to represent.

Stacey Abrams’ Upcoming Thriller Cover Revealed

Before she was a household name Stacey Abrams was known by romance fans for her romantic suspense books. If you think starting organizations to fight voter suppression and working tirelessly to maintain our democracy–also while writing nonfiction–would keep her too busy to write another novel, you were wrong. We are getting a thriller this year, While Justice Sleeps, and EW has the cover reveal.

Can Climate Disaster Apocalypse Novels Be Comforting?

Many readers, and the authors writing them, sure think so. The BBC took a look at “cli-fi – novels in which environmental devastation is a driving force, catapulting protagonists into an apocalyptic ‘after’ or else pinning them in the fast-vanishing ‘before’, with disaster bearing down, inaction endemic and anxiety soaring”. And at novels offering comfort to some readers through these dystopias, including Jenny Offill’s Weather and Rumaan Alam’s novels.

Staying Sober This Month? 10 Books to Help You Get Through Dry January

Thinking about staying sober for reasons of health, resolutions, or habit changing? Check out these books for Dry January, including I’m Black and I’m Sober: The Timeless Story Of A Woman’s Journey Back To Sanity by Chaney Allen.

DC Public Library’s Love in Color Book Club

Here’s a great new book club for romance fans (or those who want to be) in D.C.: Love in Color Book Club. DC Public Library has started a monthly virtual book club focusing on romance novels by authors of color. The first pick for January is Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin.

Teen Donates 2,000 Books To Kids To Share Reading Love

Alana Weisberg founded Bookworm Global in order to share her love of reading and get books to children during the pandemic. ICEF Inglewood was having a hard time getting books to their students while not depleting their entire library, so Weisberg donated 2,000 books collected during book drives. She now hopes to go global.

CW Passes On Arrow Spinoff

If you’d been looking forward to more of the women from the CW’s Arrow in your life, I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news but The CW has officially passed on Green Arrow and the Canaries. The show followed Katherine McNamara, Katie Cassidy, and Juliana Harkavy’s Arrow characters into their own show, which had aired a backdoor pilot in 2020.

Does It Matter That Roald Dahl’s Family is “Sorry”?

Does it mean anything to apologize for virulent bigotry on someone else’s behalf?

7-Year-Old Publishes Second Book

The kids are alright: At the age of six, Alyssa McClelland wrote and published her first book, My Big Curly Fro. The book took off, and she also released a coloring book. And now, at age seven, she has published her second book, Seasoned with Love, all about the ingredients added to recipes but also to life.

Helen Keller TikTok Conspiracy Theory

The kids are not alright: Teenagers on TikTok are spreading an ableist conspiracy theory doubting that Helen Keller could have been as accomplished as she was after an illness caused her to be deafblind. While TikTok says dehumanizing others based on disabilities is against their policies and they remove the videos, some remain up according to The Guardian article.

Ausma Zehanat Khan’s New Crime Series

Ausma Zehanat Khan will follow up her fantastic crime procedural series, Rachel Getty & Esa Khattak, with a new crime series. Unlike her Canadian-set first series, which traveled the world, this new series, Blackwater Falls, will be set in Colorado following a Muslim investigator. Can’t wait!

S&S Cancels Senator Hawley’s Book Citing His Role In Deadly Insurrection

Sen. Josh Hawley was one of the Republican senators leading the objections to certify President-elect Joe Biden before a pro-Trump mob violently stormed the U.S. Capitol forcing lawmakers into hiding. So far, five people have died. Citing Hawley’s role, Simon & Schuster has cancelled his book, which was scheduled to publish this summer. Hawley’s statements in response to the cancellation show no accountability on his part.

Lil Nas X Social Media Posts Lead To Soar In Book Sales

Lil Nas X released a children’s book, C is For Country, and joked (although we all gotta) that he had to pay the rent, so please buy his book. Turns out fans wanted to help–or, you know, read a fun children’s book because the Old Town Road singer ended up sharing that his book was on top of the sales charts.

OverDrive Data For Book Nerds

OverDrive, a digital distributor used by many libraries, has released 2020 data: “Readers worldwide borrowed some 430 million e-books, audiobooks and digital magazines in the year, a hefty 33% increase over 2019…” For all the book nerd data, read on.

Why James Baldwin Should Be Required Reading

Who was James Baldwin? Was he an activist? A novelist? All of the above? Learn more about this complicated and fascinating figure now.